Previews

NFL Head Coach

If there's something that will take some getting used to, it's the constant load times that will undoubtedly take up a sizable amount of your play time with NFL Head Coach. Every time you progress, from your office hours, to staff meetings, to the front office, you're going to encounter a loading screen. To make this unavoidable part of the experience more palatable, a series of inspirational quotations from some of the greatest coaches in NFL history have been laid out in attractive painted loading screens. The final version of the game will undoubtedly have much faster load times than the preview build I've gotten my hands on, but with as much work put into these interstitial screens, it's a safe bet that players should be prepared for these regular waits.

Preparing for the NFL Draft was fun since I was able to highlight a large amount of players for my scouting director to target at the NFL combine. He brought me 25 detailed reports on players, which could be analyzed to extrapolate projected in-game attributes for their ability. I was told to not pay so much attention to the mental game, but instead to the physical aspects of the players, since you can always teach the other stuff, but no amount of coaching will make someone run faster or jump higher. The potential for player ability is something that Madden fans will probably enjoy, since players no longer have a single overall attribute. Instead, players have a range, which shows their current state and their top potential. Your players' strengths can be increased through practice, motivation, and on-the-field performance. But the players who practice the most and try their hardest still won't be able to exceed their potential, so it's important to draft and recruit players with natural ability.

Sitting at your desk and taking calls, working on contracts, and creating custom plays may not be the most exciting endeavor for many, but lots of die-hard football enthusiasts will surely eat this up. That is, if they're able to get past the idea of managing dozens of menus, stat sheets, and lists. When game time comes, you'll have to be willing to watch your players perform from the sidelines, without an ability to directly influence the outcome of the game, but in a sense this is exactly what it's like for Bill Cowher every Sunday. They may not win all the glory of the biggest NFL stars, but the NFL head coach's work all year long may well be one of the most important factors in creating a dynasty. We'll have more on NFL Head Coach as it approaches release.